Fighters from Islamist group Ansar Dine stand guard as they prepare to publicly lash a member of the Islamic Police found guilty of adultery, in Timbuktu, Mali, about a month ago. International experts are unsure what will bring back political stability to a country that once had a reputation as a strong democracy.

Photograph by: STR
, AP

Senior United Nations, African and European officials will try on Friday to accelerate sluggish efforts to remove al-Qaida and its allies from the Saharan nation of Mali, where they control an area the size of France.

But even if the sensitivities impeding intervention can be overcome at the meeting in the Malian capital Bamako, it is highly unlikely a credible military force could go into action to oust al-Qaida and retake the territory before next March.

In the meantime, there are reports that the territory is becoming a sanctuary for al-Qaida followers from Asia, the Middle East and Africa as the local branch of the Islamic terrorist group, Al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), is solidifying its control over northern Mali.

In recent months, AQIM has moved swiftly to dominate local Malian separatist groups Ansar Dine and The Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa — which had seized control of the north of the country, including the ancient “World Heritage” city of Timbuktu, in March during the chaos following a coup that ousted President Amadou Toumani Toure.

One reason for the slowness of the international response is reluctance to deal with the leader of the junta that launched the March coup, Capt. Amadou Sanogo, and the supposedly civilian interim administration led by President Dioncounda Traore he and his men have put in place.

The coup leaders have promised elections next May to produce a new administration. But many governments, especially in Europe, are reluctant to give credibility to the interim regime by partnering with it to sweep al-Qaida out of the north.

That hesitancy is well-founded. The interim administration of Traore does not appear to have any authority over the junta of junior officers. And the coup leaders are busy disbanding any units within the military that oppose them.

There are also reports the junta is training and arming local militias in the centre of the country.

At the same time, Sanogo and his junta were initially firmly opposed to any outside intervention, fearing it would give the international community an opportunity to remove the coup leaders and impose its own interim administration.

Those doubts still linger, and on Thursday several thousand supporters of the army took to the streets of Bamako protesting against plans for foreign intervention.

It was not until the middle of September that the reluctant government formally asked the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to send troops to help recapture the north of the country.

These delays have also acted as a drag on the UN Security Council, which has yet to mandate military intervention.

The latest UN resolution, passed on Oct. 12, reflects earlier skepticism that ECOWAS has a credible plan for action. The resolution gives Mali’s neighbours and supporting governments in Europe and the U.S. until Nov. 26 to come up with a detailed plan for military action against AQIM and its allies.

The purpose of the meeting in Bamako on Friday — which will include new African Union chief Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, Mali’s interim President Traore and the UN’s special envoy, the former Italian prime minister and President of the European Union Commission, Romano Prodi — is to get this process up and running.

Despite the urgency felt by some governments, especially the U.S. and France, to remove AQIM and its allies from northern Mali before they can deeply root this latest terrorist state, there is a widespread feeling that the Malian military should take the lead in operations on the ground.

Last week, EU foreign ministers authorized the preparation of plans for their countries to aid military intervention in Mali, but only by training and restructuring the Malian military so it can lead the campaign to recapture the north.

Even France, whose President Francois Hollande has called for intervention as soon as possible, is promising his home audience there will be no French “boots on the ground.”

French assistance will be limited to training Malian troops and perhaps ECOWAS forces with little or no experience of desert warfare, and sharing intelligence. France is already flying reconnaissance missions over northern Mali, and there are reports that French special forces are in position in neighbouring countries, most of which, like Mali, are former French colonies with which Paris maintains security arrangements.

Meanwhile in northern Mali, AQIM, whose members mostly come from neighbouring Algeria, and its allies are imposing their puritanical and intolerant form of Islam on local people.

Earlier this month, about 100 women marched in Timbuktu to protest the AQIM imposition of a ban on music and insistence that women must wear veils in public. AQIM fighters fired into the air to disperse the women.

This week, there were reports from Timbuktu that AQIM and its local allies, Ansar Dine, started a new campaign to destroy the tombs of Muslim saints that they consider blasphemous.

Fighters from Islamist group Ansar Dine stand guard as they prepare to publicly lash a member of the Islamic Police found guilty of adultery, in Timbuktu, Mali, about a month ago. International experts are unsure what will bring back political stability to a country that once had a reputation as a strong democracy.

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the "X" in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.